Astronomy
This article from the LA Times has been making the rounds in the feminist and women-in-science blogosphere. You can see commentary from Pharyngula and Isis the Goddess/Scientist (warning: NSFW!), among others.
The upshot of the story is that Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Biden, has been going around being addressed with the title "Dr." since she has a doctorate in education. The LA Times seems to think this is a big deal because she isn't an MD, and she's the first second lady (did you parse that correctly?) to continue working while her husband is in office. The subtext there is outrage that Dr. Biden would dare make herself more educated than her husband and then flaunt it by continuing to work, with disdain for intellectuals in general thrown in for good measure.
I worked hard for my degree, thank you very much, and like being addressed by Doctor, even if it does come across as pompous. It's especially important if my male peers are being addresses as doctor: I should get the same respect. I can't win, anyway: Miss doesn't fit, Missus bothers me, and Miz comes across as bitchy. Why should my marital status matter anyway?
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Astronomy
The Doctor is In
This article from the LA Times has been making the rounds in the feminist and women-in-science blogosphere. You can see commentary from Pharyngula and Isis the Goddess/Scientist (warning: NSFW!), among others.
The upshot of the story is that Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Biden, has been going around being addressed with the title "Dr." since she has a doctorate in education. The LA Times seems to think this is a big deal because she isn't an MD, and she's the first second lady (did you parse that correctly?) to continue working while her husband is in office. The subtext there is outrage that Dr. Biden would dare make herself more educated than her husband and then flaunt it by continuing to work, with disdain for intellectuals in general thrown in for good measure.
I worked hard for my degree, thank you very much, and like being addressed by Doctor, even if it does come across as pompous. It's especially important if my male peers are being addresses as doctor: I should get the same respect. I can't win, anyway: Miss doesn't fit, Missus bothers me, and Miz comes across as bitchy. Why should my marital status matter anyway?
- Astrology : A Science Or Superstition?
Human beings have always been curious to know their future. Whenever someone is in difficulty and cannot easily come out of it, he wants to know whether the days of his misery will come to an end at all. And if yes, then when? When one invests a great...
- Cswa Chair's Message To The Greater Astronomical Community On Harassment
Early last week, the Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy (CSWA) received a letter from Geoff Marcy, along with a request for publication in our newsletter. On Friday, a buzzfeed article describing the UC Berkeley Title IX investigation...
- It's Not About That Damn Shirt
The following was submitted to the Women in Astronomy Blog by a female astronomer who wishes to use the pseudonym Kerri Benjamin. The next sentence is the most important thing in this whole post: I am posting this under a pseudonym because I am...
- Work-family: On Balance
As rosy a picture I painted in my previous posting on work-family balance, the truth of the matter is that raising children is not an easy task. Trying to raise children while establishing a career is even tougher. On the good days, I count the number...
- I?m Planning A Research Sabbatical Next Year And By The Way, We?re Expecting A Kid
by Ann Hornschemeier Next year is stacking up to be my dream year, which I?ll describe at the end of this blog. Hey, don?t skip or you?ll miss the point! Before the dream, however, came a bit of a nightmare. For a while we had major funding problems...